Refreshing
by chalantness
Summary: "So tell me again about this life with no consequences." "It's kind of awesome." WillHolly. alternate ending to "The Substitute" 2x07


**Fandom.** WillHolly

Disclaimer: Glee © Fox/Ryan Murphy

* * *

**Refreshing**

By sakuracherish814

* * *

"I'm—sorry you had to see that."

Holly shakes her head but remains silent, gripping the beer bottle a little too tightly. As he studies her expression, he can tell that after a life of constantly running it has been awhile since she's had a taste of something as serious as this, let alone his mess of a marriage and his handful of an ex-wife. This, of course, only makes him guiltier.

He lets out an exasperated sigh, running a hand through his hair.

"She's your ex-wife?" He looks up at her, nodding, and she offers a small smile. "Good. Because she was kind of a—"

"Bitch?"

She looks like she wants to laugh, but holds it back. "Well, I wouldn't be _that_ harsh…"

"No, no," he corrects, laughing a little himself, "she can be one most of the time. It's definitely a reason as to _why_ we're now divorced."

"You divorced her."

He smiles a little. "How could you tell?"

"I've run away from enough men to recognize that look in her eyes," she sighs, bringing her beer bottle up to her lips. "The big question is: do you still love her?"

He exhales a heavy sigh, his eyes dropping to his beer. "I'm pretty sure a part of me always will," he admits. "I was with her for about sixteen years, and I'd been in love with her since high school. But she'd been a different person then, and that's the one I fell in love with. The woman you saw there"—he gestures towards the door Terri had stormed out of—"is a completely different person."

She smiles but doesn't say anything, and he knows why:

The heavy atmosphere was beginning to return, and she was beginning to retreat again—her automatic defense mechanism.

_Let's not scare her away._

"So," he begins, "tell me again about this life with no consequences."

She laughs and shrugs one shoulder. "It's kind of awesome."

He laughs as well, clinking their beers together in an unofficial toast before they drink in a comfortable silence. As her eyes wander around his apartment, he studies her warily.

It was a quick-fix, and he knew it was wrong. But right now, he needed to get her to trust him. If he knew anything about dealing with people who ran for a living, you needed to give them a reason to stop running, and then give them a reason to want to heal.

_It's just like with the kids._

"What are you going to do now that you're resigning from glee? Go back to subbing?"

She shrugs. "Probably. Which kind of sucks," she admits with an amused chuckle as she sits herself on the arm of the couch. "I was growing attached to McKinley."

"You're going to miss it?"

She nods, and then laughs again. "It's strange. I haven't wanted to stay in one place for a _long time_."

_Bring it on gently_. "Then," he begins, sitting himself onto the couch and looking up at her, "why don't you stay at McKinley?"

Her eyes widen a little. "What?"

"Come be my co-director," he insists. "It'll be fun."

"Will, I-I don't know about that," she admits, and he swears he sees a look of fear cross her eyes.

"You should at least consider it," he offers. "The kids already love you, and with Sectionals coming up, I know that having you as a partner will do nothing but wonders. Plus, it'll be the chance you need to try and get your life back together." When he sees her studying him warily, he adds in his last attempt at convincing her, "You'll get to stop running and be a part of something again."

"I…don't know what to say."

He offers his most cliché answer yet. "What about 'yes'?"

And suddenly she's smiling at him, a warm sensation coming over him that he can't quite place.

It didn't feel like seeing that sliver of light in a dark gray sky during the storm, but more like realizing how much he wanted to dance and sing and splash around instead. It felt—felt so—

_Refreshing._

* * *

The standing ovation his kids give him makes him want to tear up. (He just can't wait to see their reaction when he tells them the good news.)

"Alright, alright. Thank you very much, and please, please—sit down."

They happily oblige, the clapping and cheering still well alive for a few more moments before it slowly died down and they sat attentively, wide smiles plastered on their faces. "Thank you. For that, and for all the kind words you said about me to Sue." He looks at all their faces, breaking into a smile. "The feelings are mutual."

He takes a breath. "Now, we've got to get cracking, though." Turning his back on them and to the piano, he catches a face just beyond the door and smiles.

"We lost a few days there and it's all going to be about focus and hard work for the next couple of days."

"I guess Miss Holiday really is gone," Puck mumbles.

Will's smile widens.

Spinning back around on his heels, he arches an eyebrow. "Which reminds me: you guys really liked Miss Holiday, didn't you?"

"Don't get us wrong, Mr. Schu," Tina speaks up, "we'll always want you as our teacher. She was just—kind of a nice break." Beside her, Mike nods, and the rest of the class murmurs in agreement.

"Well, I'm glad you feel that way."

Silence.

"Mr. Schu, what do you mean?" Rachel questions. "What's going on?"

"Well," he begins, stretching out the word in that way that makes the kids shift to the edge of their chairs, "I kind of had a word with Sue."

"Oh, God, what did she do to Miss Holiday?"

"Don't worry, you guys, it was nothing horrible." He smiles, leaning his back against the piano. "It's something that's pretty great, actually, for her and for all of us."

They wait.

"Guys, I'd like you to welcome your new co-director."

And there was a collective gasp as he hears her heels click against the tiles, coming to a stop right beside him. "_Hola clase._"

* * *

He knew there was something special about Holly Holiday.

When he saw her cry, he knew he wanted to help her. When he saw the way the kids gushed all over her, he knew he was going to like this new arrangement. When she had called him out on the age of _Singing in the Rain_ and offered a happy medium—which involved Rihanna, several dozen umbrellas, arguing with Sue, and _a lot_ of water—he knew he wanted her to stick around for a while.

They are standing in the choir room, him flipping through sheet music and her humming to herself as she moved around chairs. The thunder rumbles so loudly that the building shakes, and the lightning flashes so brightly it's almost blinding.

And suddenly she's there beside him placing a kiss on his cheek as he hears the kids talking excitedly as they enter.

"It's really storming out there," he tells her, earning a smile from her in return.

"I'll go get the umbrellas."

* * *

**A/n.** Inspiration: "Singing in the Rain/Umbrella" by the Cast of Glee. And that ending dance (: It was beautiful!

But sorry if it sucks. Definitely not my best work.

But I really, _really_ liked Holly Holiday and Gwyneth Paltrow in "The Substitute" and I was kind of exploring the possibilities if they made her a series regular. I think it'd be awesome if they did that, or if they at least bring her back. With Shelby mostly gone (though I hear she'll be back this season) and Emma with Carl, I definitely see myself shipping Will and Holly.

Here's my "artwork" that goes with this fic, on my deviantart account:

_http:**(double slash)**sakuracherishchan**(dot)**deviantart**(dot)**com**(slash)**art**(slash)**What-Glorious-Feeling-186977808_

_So you read it. Love it? Hate it? Please review it!_


End file.
